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AWARD WINNER
Heifer Calf Rearer of the Year winners
S
taffordshire dairy farmers Richard and Val Wedd are winners of the Heifer Calf Rearer of the Year
competition sponsored by Volac and supported by XLVets and farming publication, British Dairying. The
Wedds were nominated for the competition by their vet Rose Jackson of XLVets' Scarsdale Vet Group.
FarmSkills training course
To bring a sharper strategic focus to their
rearing practices, the couple attended two
one-day XLVets FarmSkills calf rearing courses
run by Scarsdale Vet Group. The first course
focused on the period from birth to weaning
and outlined best practice for colostrum
management and prevention of calf scour.
The second course covered the period from
weaning to first calving. It focused largely
on feeding calves and monitoring growth
rates to achieve target weights at first service
and enable heifers to be calved down at
24 months.
Rose explains: ‘Our FarmSkills courses are run
as practical workshops for small groups of
people, ensuring the maximum benefit for
everyone who attends. They are part of a
nationwide programme - so the same courses
are also available in other parts of the country,
organised by other XLVets practices.
‘Increasingly farm assurance schemes expect
farmers to demonstrate they have undertaken
some training and improved their expertise. A
course certificate is always given to attendees
who complete a FarmSkills course, as a record
to go in their herd health plan. In some areas,
like here in the Midlands, various funding
sources are also available which make these
courses even more affordable.’
WINTER 2011 ISSUE
LIVESTOCK MATTERS
20
Richard and Val farm in partnership with
Richard's parents, Tom and Janet, at Piltons
Farm, near Burton on Trent. They are
currently expanding their closed herd from
100 to 150 milking cows, and so they
need as many heifer replacements as
possible. The Wedds have focused on their
heifer rearing management for two reasons;
numerical and financial. They're also
working on reducing days to first calving;
currently only two thirds of the heifer crop
is calving at 24 months.
‘The sooner we can get their milk in
the tank, the faster we'll make a
return on investment,’
Richard explains.
Val and Richard Wedd and son Archie
Veterinary Surgeon
Rose Jackson
XLVets Practice
Scarsdale Veterinary
Group